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Animal Proverbs - Hit the snake 7 inches below its head

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IN THIS LESSON
ID: 4257 Intermediate
Animal metaphors are prevalent in almost every language, but people from different cultures may regard the same animal differently. In Chinese proverbs, you will see a lot of animal metaphors to symbolize human actions. In this lesson, we're showing you three common proverbs related to snakes. They can be directly translated to "Hit the snake 7 inches below its head", "Once got bitten by the snake, and ended up being afraid of the straw ropes for ten years", and "A greedy man is like a snake that wants to swallow an elephant". Do you know what they actually mean? Check out these proverbs and learn how to apply them to daily life!
Mon Nov 11 2019 | Joshua, Joy
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Detailed Vocabulary
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SIMPLIFIED PINYIN ENGLISH  
一朝被蛇咬，十年怕草绳 yīzhāobèishéyǎo, shíniánpàcǎoshéng lit. Got bitten by a snake one day, and then became afraid of straw ropes for a decade (idiom); fig. Once bitten, twice shy.
一旦 yīdàn once (sth happens, then...)
就算 jiùsuàn even if
感到 gǎndào to feel
一朝被蛇咬，十年怕草绳。
yī zhāo bèi shé yǎo ，shí nián pà cǎo shéng 。
Once bitten, twice shy.
所以人一旦失败或是受到伤害，就算很久很久以后遇到类似的事情，或是类似的东西的时候，他们还是会记得，还是会感到害怕。
suǒyǐ rén yīdàn shībài huòshì shòudào shānghài ，jiùsuàn hěn jiǔ hěn jiǔ yǐhòu yùdào lèisì de shìqing ，huòshì lèisì de dōngxi de shíhou ，tāmen háishi huì jìde ，háishi huì gǎndào hàipà 。
Therefore, once people encounter failure or get hurt, even though a long time has passed, when they run into similar situations, they would still be reminded and get scared of.
她受过一次伤害之后，就很难再相信男朋友了。这就是“一朝被蛇咬，十年怕草绳。”
tā shòu guò yīcì shānghài zhīhòu ，jiù hěn nán zài xiāngxìn nánpéngyou le 。zhè jiùshì “yīzhāobèishéyǎo, shíniánpàcǎoshéng 。”
Ever since she got hurt, she has had a difficult time trusting her boyfriend. This is “Once bitten, twice shy.”
差点溺水的那一次之后，我永远都不敢游泳了。这就是“一朝被蛇咬，十年怕草绳。”
chàdiǎn nìshuǐ de nà yīcì zhīhòu ，wǒ yǒngyuǎn dōu bù gǎn yóuyǒng le 。zhè jiùshì “yīzhāobèishéyǎo,shíniánpàcǎoshéng 。”
After that time I almost drowned, I would never have the courage to swim again.This is “Once bitten, twice shy.”
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